Composers Unveiled

From the Venetian lagoon to a lonely lodging house in Vienna, this episode follows Antonio Vivaldi’s astonishing rise, fall, and resurrection. Known as the Red Priest, he was a sickly child, a virtuoso violinist, an ordained priest who abandoned the Mass, a tireless opera entrepreneur, and the composer who reshaped the concerto forever. Discover the hidden musical world of Venice’s orphaned girls, the scandal surrounding singer Anna Giro, Vivaldi’s influence on Bach, and the cruel reversals that left him poor and forgotten. Then travel to 1920s Turin, where lost manuscripts brought his music—and his voice—back to life.Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/intl-de/artist/2QOIawHpSlOwXDvSqQ9YJR?si=J2G2hStdRFuj1ca7PlWIfQTomb: https://de.findagrave.com/memorial/9963/antonio-vivaldiSociety: https://www.cini.it/en/institutes-and-centres/antonio-vivaldi/Museum: https://www.vivaldifourseasons.it/de/vivaldi-tours

Henry Purcell lived only 36 years, rarely strayed beyond Westminster, and yet became the defining English composer of the Baroque age. In this episode, we follow his remarkable story from Restoration London’s musical rebirth to the courts, churches, theatres, taverns, and coffeehouses that shaped his world. Discover the prodigy who held England’s most prestigious musical posts, hid dazzling musical architecture inside his sonatas, and transformed English speech into music of startling emotional power. It is a story of genius, ambition, political upheaval, grief, reinvention—and a legacy that took two centuries to be fully heard.  Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/intl-de/artist/3tMLo1k3iUo82coMLWXzxq?si=yilmm-uNQLyS8ClcHnaDDATomb: https://de.findagrave.com/memorial/7062/henry-purcellSociety: http://www.henrypurcell.org.uk/

How did a fatherless boy from a small village in northern Italy become one of the most influential composers in European history? In this episode, we follow Arcangelo Corelli from Fusignano to the palaces of Rome, where he rose from church violinist to one of the defining musical voices of the Baroque. Along the way, we meet queens, cardinals, rivals, and pupils. We explore the quiet perfectionism behind his six published collections, the deeply personal bond with Matteo Fornari, and the music that shaped Bach, Vivaldi, Handel, and generations to come. This is the story of the man who gave the violin a new voice.  Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/intl-de/artist/5dmMpIyAVaH6b9FLFgWPrF?si=-AgQE6RuQiG1vwVeHhe4WgTomb: https://de.findagrave.com/memorial/4550/arcangelo-corelliEnsemble: https://corelliensemble.co.uk/About-us.php

Everyone knows Pachelbel’s Canon in D—but few know the remarkable life behind it. In this episode, we follow Johann Pachelbel from post-war Nuremberg to imperial Vienna, through friendship with the Bach family, professional triumphs, financial strain, plague, bereavement, and a final return home. 

Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber fled an instrument-buying errand and never returned—then became Salzburg’s greatest Baroque musical visionary. Discover the runaway violin virtuoso behind bizarre retunings, drunken-soldier sound effects, colossal cathedral music, and the beaver on his own noble coat of arms.Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/intl-de/artist/2kMM5v3f7rti00gIbVc1Tk?si=yKHBwKF8SaeEtFfTJkhd1gMuseum: https://www.salzburgmuseum.at/ausstellung/heinrich-ignaz-franz-biber-1644-1704/International Biber Competition: https://fiorimusicali-biberwettbewerb.com/wettbewerb/Biber_competition_e.html